【正文】 est of the school year. Ten months later, that chance unfolded as I found myself sitting in the headmaster’s office with my grandfather, now having an entirely different conversation. I smiled and flashed back to the embarrassing moment at the beginning of the year as the headmaster informed me of my option to skip the sixth grade. Justice is sweet! 21. What did the author’s classmates think about his report? A. Excellent. B. Ridiculous. C. Boring. D. Puzzling. 22. Why was the author confused about the task? A. He was unfamiliar with American history. B. He followed the advice and flipped a coin. C. He fot his teacher’s instruction. D. He was new at the school. 23. The underlined word “burning” in Para. 3 probably means ________. A. annoyed B. ashamed C. ready D. eager 24. In the end, the author turned things around ________. A. by redoing his task B. through his own efforts C. with the help of his grandfather D. under the guidance of his headmaster B Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan sees an epidemic (流行病 ) sweeping across Americas farmland. It has little to do with the usual challenges, such as flood, rising fuel prices and cropeating insects. The country’s fa rmers are getting older, and there are fewer people standing in line to take their place. National agricultural census (普查 ) figures show that the fastestgrowing group of farmers is the part over 65. Merrigan is afraid the average age will be even higher when the 2020 statistics are pleted. Merrigan, a former college professor, is making stops at universities across the country in hopes of encouraging more students to think about careers in agriculture. Aside from trying to stop the graying of America’s farmers, her work is made tougher by a recent blog posting that put agriculture at on a list of “useless” college degrees. Top federal agriculture officials are talking about the posting, and it has the attention of agricultural anizations across the country. “There couldn’t be anything that’s more incorrect,” Merrigan said. “We know that there aren’t enough qualified graduates to fill the jobs that are out there in American agriculture. In addition, a growing world population that some experts predict will require 70% more food production by 2050,” she said. “ I truly believe we’re at a gol den age of agriculture. Global demand is at an alltime record high, and global supplies are at alltime record lows,” said Matt Rush, director of the Texas Farm Bureau. “Production costs are going to be valuable enough that younger people are going to have the opportunity to be involved in agriculture.” The Department of Agriculture has programs aimed at developing more farmers and at increasing interest in locally grown food. The National Young Farmers’ Coalition has also been pushing for state and federal policy changes to make it easier for new farmers. Ryan Best, president of Future Farmers of America, has been living out of a suitcase, traveling the country and visiting with high school students about careers in agriculture. The 21 yearold Best hopes his messagethat this is a new time in agriculturewill motivate the next generation to turn around the statistics. “Never before have we had the innovations ( 創(chuàng)新 ) in technology which have led to agriculture in this country being the most efficient it has ever been,” he said. “ there’ s really a place for everybody to fit in.” 25. What is the new challenge to American agriculture? A. Fewer and older farmers. B. Higher fuel prices. C. More natural disasters. D. Lower agricultural output. 26. Why is Merrigan visiting universities across the country? A. To draw federal agriculture officials39。 attention. B. To select qualified agriculture graduates. C. To clarify a recent blog posting. D. To talk more students into farming careers. 27. According to Matt Rush, American agriculture will provide opportunities for younger people because ________. A. the government will cover production costs B. global food supplies will be even lower C. investment in agriculture will be profitable D. America will increase its food export 28. What do the underlined words to turn around the statistics in the last paragraph mean? A. To reanalyze the result of the national census. B. To increase agricultural production. C. To bring down the average age of farmers. D. To invest more in agriculture. C What brings a nation together? Of the four choices — shared values, language, history, and religion, it’s shared values. In our latest poll (民意調(diào)査 ), seven out of 16 countries chose values as the greatest factor (因索） bringing a nation together, and six preferred language. Both choices scored high in the poll, suggesting that our values and how we express them are closely linked. Still, history was not fotten in some countries,